Methylmercury in fish and hair samples from the Balbina reservoir, Brazilian Amazon

The present study aimed to evaluate methylmercury in fish and human hair samples from an important hydroelectrical reservoir, Balbina (Brazil, Amazon). It presents a quite intense fishing activity and there is no known goldmining activity in its watershed. Fish and human hair were analyzed with a new extraction technique and measured by GC-ECD. Analytical quality was checked through intercomparisons between two laboratories with local samples and certified standards from IAEA. Methylmercury in hair ranged from 2.0 to 21.6 mu g.g(-1) with a mean of 8.76 +/- 5.20 mu g.g(-1) (N=20), while the methylmercury percentages were above 90. Fish presented methylmercury levels ranging from 0.03 to 0.9 mu g.g(-1) wet wt with a mean of 0.24 +/- 0.18 mu g.g(-1) wet wt (N=32), which is below the limit established for food by Brazilian legislation (0.5 mu g.g(-1) wet wt) and methylmercury mean percentages were above 95%. The total mean daily methylmercury intake ranged from 11 to 55 mu g for 70% of the sampled population from the village based on a daily consumption of about 110 g of fish with methylmercury concentrations in the range of 0.1 to 0.5 mu g.g(-1). This calculation is consistent with methylmercury concentrations in hair samples in the range of 2.6 to 13.1 mu g.g(-1). (C) 1998 Academic Press.